Underground Construction - October 2018 - 44

20 1 8 C A PA B I LITI E S G U I D E
SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Groundbreaking Training Program Launches

Northwest Line College has always been at
the tip of the spear when it comes to educational and training programs in the electric
power industry. They can now add oil and
gas to their list of training capabilities.
"Over the past 25 years, NLC has seen
many historical days - pinnacle days-days
that are far higher in significance than most.
Today is one of those days," said Aaron Howell, CEO of Northwest Line College (NLC).
"NLC launched its first pre-apprentice
program on gas distribution at NLC Florida.
The program will grow in time, and NLC will
provide another wonderful career opportunity for America's youth. And as always, we
will do what is best for the student."
In a groundbreaking, brand new program,
NLC launched the gas distribution program
on September 10.
"This new training program is a
game-changer for the gas distribution industry," said Vivek Arora, Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of
Mears Group, a Quanta Services company.
"NLC has a fantastic track record of graduating highly qualified students who advance
their careers in the electric power industry.
Applying the same educational approach and
discipline to the gas distribution industry
allows individuals to start their careers off
right and help solve the industry-wide shortage of skilled workers."
The five-week program offers instruction
by top subject matter experts in the field.
"We train people on lines - whether it be
gas, electric or telecommunications line,"
said William "Bill" Bosch, campus president
for NLC. "It's just groundbreaking. NLC will
always be the Northwest Line College, but
the acquisition by and working with Quanta
allows us so many other opportunities to
train young men and women and basically to
change their lives.
"It's all about the students, and I think
that's the common vision of Quanta and
NLC."
In January, Quanta Services acquired
NLC, the industry leading and largest educational and training organization that trains
across the full lifespan of a line worker's career, from pre-apprenticeship through experienced lineman. NLC was founded in 1993,
is based in Boise, Idaho, with additional campuses in California, Florida and Texas.
In addition to their large catalog of electric
44

OCTOBER 2018 | UConOnline.com

The industry as a whole
is facing a pending
shortage of skilled
workers, and Quanta is
working to get ahead
of that. The start of
the Gas Distribution
programs demonstrates
a commitment by
Quanta and NLC to
their employees and
the industry.
power training, NLC is working to develop
more natural gas distribution plus telecommunications curriculum.
"We believe NLC's educational models can
be applied to all of Quanta's service lines,
which would facilitate the development of
additional curricula over time," said Earl C.
"Duke" Austin, Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer of Quanta Services. "The acquisition of NLC is another example of Quanta's
ability to find solutions that enhance our
position in the marketplace and support and
advance our customers' long-term goals."
Since NLC was acquired by Quanta, the
college has begun to focus on more areas of
expansion to keep up with industry needs.
"We didn't stop our investment with the
purchase of NLC," said Matthew Compher,
vice president of Safety, Health and Environmental at Quanta. "We have continued to
look at ways to extend their education model
to other lines of our business."
The industry as a whole is facing a pending shortage of skilled workers, and Quanta
is working to get ahead of that. The start of
the Gas Distribution program demonstrates
a commitment by Quanta and NLC to their
employees and the industry.

"We have these baby boomer retirements
happening, and almost 50 percent of the
linemen trade will be retiring within the next
five to 10 years," Bosch said. "We can't find
enough skilled workers, and we've realized
all the trades are going through the same
thing."
"We realized we could expand at our campuses and offer the same type of services
for gas industry and telecom industry in the
future."
Compher agrees this is about creating a
career, not just a job.
"When new people come into our industry, they consistently ask 'where can I go?'
and 'how do I get there?'" he said. "With this
program, we can show them the roadmap to
success starts with this five-week program."
The first set of course students are from
within various Quanta companies, and the
course is taking place on the campus in Edgewater, Florida.
"I'm very impressed with the passion and
the quality of the students," Bosch said.
"They really want to enter the gas program,
and they're just taking advantage of the program 200 percent."
There are several more courses lined up
throughout this year and next, both at the
Florida and Texas campuses.
"We have and continue to build the leading safe, quality and productive workforce,"
said Compher. "NLC has long been the leader
in powerline education, and now they will
lead the way in gas distribution education."
NLC will soon begin to offer these new
courses to companies and students outside
the Quanta family.
"It becomes a better investment for companies these students are going to work
for," said Bosch. "The employee wants this
training, and they walk out with ground level
knowledge and can immediately be productive on their crews."
The program has been in development,
and curriculum was written by top experts in
the gas distribution industry from across the
country. NLC then hires the same caliber of
experts as course instructors.
"They are being trained by the absolute
best instructors out in the field," Bosch said.
"These subject matter experts have come to
NLC to share their expert training."

http://www.UConOnline.com

Underground Construction - October 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Underground Construction - October 2018